Welcome to my 'other blog' the one that explores my crafty side. I have been a maker of 'things' since childhood. By nature I'm creative. I still love to write, and you can click on this link to visit my blog: Hanging On My Word, which is where I indulge in the thought and word side. Although a teacher by profession, I don't offer tutorials. This is my showcase of projects I like to share. So pull aside the curtains and let's begin (I'm a bit theatrical too!).

Saturday, 13 December 2014

Here’s my first little bear. He came as a kit with Let’s Knit magazine a few months ago and I’ve been waiting for the opportunity to knit him. I had so many other projects lined up.

Amanda Berry, the designer, had provided him with a little waistcoat and bow tie, but I’d just bought this spotty ribbon and I thought it suited him so well. The red wool in the kit won’t go to waste as I have Amanda’s robin pattern lined up as my next project. I love her patterns; they are so easy to follow, and the results speak for themselves.

Wednesday, 3 December 2014

I’m addicted to gingerbread men, but not the edible variety. I discovered a free download of Amanda Berry’s pattern and decided to have a go at making one as a Christmas decoration. The trouble was that once I was on a roll I thought I’d make another one.

Amanda’s original design was slightly different. She actually knitted the jelly drop buttons but I used artistic licence and delved into my huge button stash. I also added a bow around the neck and when I realised that I had gingham buttons to match the gingham ribbon, and in the right colours too, well.......

.......I had to make another one, this time with pink ‘icing’ decoration.

The large smiley mouths are ‘couched’, i.e. laid in a curve and then caught in place with a few stitches in matching sewing cotton. I’m having a break from gingerbread men for the moment but I’m sure I’ll make another one; I’ve now discovered some purple gingham ribbon and matching buttons just asking to be used. Anyway they need another little friend to make pairs and so that they don’t fall out!

Gift-wrapped! I made this little bag for him and if you look closely at that square in the middle you will see tiny gingerbread men amongst the Christmas Puddings. The drawstring bag is in fact ‘drawn' with gingerbread man ribbon. The finishing touch is a tiny smiling angel charm that looked to me like a gingerbread lady with wings.

And here he is with his edible companions. Whereas they will disappear rapidly, he will be here again next year.

2015 update and sure enough, here are three more of the little fellas ready to go to new homes. See all my projects on my Ravelry Page.

Thursday, 20 November 2014

Yes, Roll On Christmas and I can display my latest Christmas Cutie designed by Amanda Berry of Fluff and Fuzz. He was made from a kit which came with ‘Let’s Knit magazine. The kit included his eyes and pom-pom nose; the only things I had to find were knitting needles and stuffing. He was completed over a few evenings whilst watching TV. Now for a name; I rather fell for the character Rollo in the excellent TV series ‘Vikings’ and although we know that real Vikings didn’t have horned helmets, as usual I will exercise creative licence. Anyway it makes the title of this post work!

Tuesday, 11 November 2014

How could anyone resist? This is Amanda Berry’s Dandy the Donkey from Let’s get Crafting: Knitting and Crochet magazine issue 64. This was such an easy make for a novice knitter and I even learned some new techniques;wrap and turn and making a mitred rectangle (for the donkey’s neck). Dandy was designed as a Christmas mascot.

All accessories are removable, including his little Christmas hat with holes for his ears, and yes, his winter boots.

Amanda managed to incorporate all the colours in the ‘Bobble’ yarn kit which comes attached to the magazine, which is why underneath his stripey saddlle he has pink and grey stripes! Amanda’s donkey-hat has a few white strands of yarn attached which I have omitted and I may later make a little pom-pom. There is a small amount of Cranberry pink left so perhaps he should have a scarf too. We have a tradition of re-naming in this household. Once the toy is made we all take a look at it and decide what it should be called. This little donkey can’t be Dandy because that name is already taken by my mouse. I rather fancy calling him Davy.

Saturday, 18 October 2014

This is my spooky knitted ghost, which will make a nice decoration for the table on Hallowe’en. The pattern, designed by Susie Johns, was a free download, and originally apeared in ‘Let’s Knit’ magazine, where he was called Wilfred the Friendly Ghost. The only thing I altered was his mouth as I wanted him to look as though he was saying “Ooooooh!”

As well as the bats in my previous post I’ve been busy making Hallowe’en Bags to contain the goodies my grandchildren hope to collect when Trick or Treating. This will only be done under strict supervision and they will only be visiting friends who have been warned beforehand.

The bags are just drawstring cotton and took very little time to make. I found a scrap of pumpkin fabric in my stash left over from a project many years ago. I ironed the pumpkins onto vilene and appliqued them onto the bags. I also found some neon coloured satin stars and bought some matching cord for each bag. My twin grandchildren won’t argue as one will have the green and one will have the orange......or maybe they will!

Monday, 13 October 2014

I’ve just finished these two knitted bats for the twins. They are coming to visit and will be here for Hallowe’en. As usual Amanda Berry’s pattern, available on her Fluff and Fuzz website, was so easy to follow.

They are quirky and comical; not at all spooky, so I added some seasonal overlays to the picture.

I love the fact that they can hang upside down with wings folded. I think the twins will love them. But what are we going to call them? Amanda’s pattern is called ‘Billy the Bat’ but we have a tradition of re-naming to suit the finished item/s. I’m going for Boris (as in Karloff) and Bella (close enough to Bela Lugosi).

Tuesday, 16 September 2014

The lovely creature lying languidly on the rocks of my local shoreline is my latest knitted creation. I used the pattern ‘Pearl the Mermaid’ in Issue 63 of ‘Let’s Get Crafting! Knitting & Crochet’. Once again, she was designed by the talented Amanda Berry of Fluff & Fuzz. As a novice knitter I find her patterns so easy to follow, and I’m learning new techniques as I go along. This time I learned how to make a bobble; very necessary for a mermaid’s thumb!

I used the yarn which was provided with the magazine, including a deep sea green with a sparkle; just perfect for a mermaid’s tail. The only exception was the mermaid’s arms, which of necessity had to be made from another, slightly more peachy, colour from the yarn pack, in Amanda’s original design. As luck would have it I had a ball of baby-pink in my stash that matched the head and body more closely. I couldn’t find any small black buttons in my box, but once again my luck was in as there were just two sea-blue beads which fitted the bill. As a doll maker of many years, I couldn’t resist adding a subtle little nose and tiny smiling mouth. The hair came from the pack as well, but I had a pleasantly therapeutic evening, in front of the TV, separating each strand to give her a spindrift cloud of curls.

My daughter accompanied me on a morning walk ten minutes from where I live in Lanzarote. She wrote a lovely little acrostic poem using the word SIRENA, which is Spanish for mermaid.

Scent of the sea, and the salty air

If she's ever on shore, it won't be for long

Rocks make for her a nautical chair, while

Egrets and gulls flock to her song

Now that you've seen her are you sure she was there?

A flick of the tail, she is gone, she is gone

We had to give her a name that suited her personality; the name Margarita in Spanish stands for pearl, but she doesn’t look like a Margarita. I’ve gone for Serena, which means serene in many languages and she looks pretty serene to me, lying on the rocks in the sun! Serena the sirena has a nice ring to it I think.

Here’s my daughter among the rock pools this morning.

And the waves crashing on the shore.

I’m sure I’ll be making more mermaids; my granddaughter has already asked for one with pink hair!

Tuesday, 26 August 2014

My floppy friend above is so exhausted that she has to take time out for a rest. This is my latest knitted toy made from the pattern ‘Flamingo Friends’ in ‘Let’s Get Crafting! Knitting and Crochet Magazine', issue 61.

The designer is Lynn Rowe and it’s the first of her patterns I’ve attempted. The legs, head and neck have craft pipe cleaners threaded through them to provide stability, but I’m afraid Flo still looks on the floppy side, even though I can bend her into shape. Ah well, she seems happy enough. There’s enough yarn in the kit to make two slightly different flamingos, but I think I’ll quit whilst I’m ahead. I’m also hoping to be attempting my first knitted garment soon and I’ve still got my latest crochet bolero to finish.

Tuesday, 12 August 2014

My friend Pamela and I often have a heart-to-heart and when she moved house recently I made her these hanging decorations for her new dining area. Pam has a good eye for colour and co-ordinates fabric and accessories to great effect. Here in Lanzarote many of the dining rooms are situated in the outside shaded areas, a cool place to sit away from the always sunny weather we enjoy here. Pam had decorated hers with a winning combination of red, white and blue and, knowing my love for sewing, had given me the remnants from the soft-furnishing she had commissioned, to add to my stash.

Some of the pieces were quite small, but I thought that the best way to combine the colours was with a crazy patchwork effect.

I simply laid them out rectangles of the fabric and stitched them into several long pieces pieces first of all. Then I joined the long pieces but ‘staggered' the joins to create a random pattern.

Next the four hearts were drawn on on the reverse of the fabric and stitched along the drawn outline, leaving a small hole for stuffing.

The two hearts were then turned inside-out and trimmed closely around the edge, leaving a small seam allowance and clipping in to ensure that the curved edges were smooth.

All that was left was to add the trimmings, buttons, loop and ribbon, so that they were ready to hang.

My friend was delighted and we had great fun trying them out in several places to see where they worked best.

Thursday, 17 July 2014

Meet the new kid on the block. I’m honing my novice knitting skills by making these small projects from Let’s Get Crafting: Knitting and Crochet magazine. He’s designed by the talented Amanda Berry of Fluff and Fuzz.

In the magazine Amanda’s pattern is called Pipsqueak, but I’ve re-named mine Dandy. This partly because his yellow bow-tie makes him look so smart and ...dandy; but also his little red clown nose makes him look slightly comical. Dandy, the much-loved children’s comic, ceased publication after 75 years in 2012, so this is a kind of homage to that as well.

He took me a lot longer than any of the Bramble Bunny variations in my previous posts, and I’ve no idea why as the principle is pretty similar. I had some trouble with his mouse-ears and made several rather ragged looking ones until, eventually I gave in and got the crochet hook out - perfect.

Here he is with his new friends Wanda and Wendy. Yes I know, in real-life a mouse is so much tinier than a rabbit but we don’t talk about scale when it comes to making toys; after all, in real life rabbits and mice don’t wear clothes either!! These are designed to be cute and to make children want them as friends. Just Dandy!

Saturday, 28 June 2014

Yes, my husband decided this one needed re-naming as well! Amanda Berry’s ‘Gruff the Sheep’ pattern in Let’s Get Crafting, Knitting and Crochet is so sweet that he thought Gruff sounded a bit harsh! I struggled with the loop stitch (I am a novice knitter after all) and the body section seemed far too large when I’d completed it. I laid it to one side and got one with other project for a while. When I resumed I just decided to work in the excess flesh as it were, as stuffing. The result is a small animal who sits in the palm of your hand.

There is nowhere for sheep to safely graze in Lanzarote so I looked for the nearest patch of green amongst the picon. It was only after I’d taken the photograph that I realised I had unwittingly placed Baaarbara in a bed of mint! As long as no-one mentions sauce it will be OK.

Monday, 16 June 2014

Finished at last! I saw this pattern in the very first Simply Crochet magazine, when it came out as a one-off Summer Special last year from the makers of Simply Knitting. It has taken me about a year to make as at one stage I got so fed-up with it I thrust it to the back of the cupboard until I could face it again. Checking on Ravelry it seems others have also had issues with the pattern. I found it quite difficult to follow. I have pulled back and re-done bits of it so many times that I really fell out of love with it. However, I was determined not to beaten, especially as I had lashed out on the (expensive) correct yarn.

Rowan Savannah is 94% cotton, 6% silk and not the smoothest yarn to work with due to the way that is made. I used a 4mm and 5mm crochet hook and my tension square made up OK so I wasn’t anticipating any problems - silly me. Once it was complete I decided the bow on the shoulder was too ‘fussy’ so I undid that too. The neckline didn’t lie smoothly and I ended up fudging it quite a bit. Other than that I still like the design and the colour (Arid - a sort of pinky brown).
The pattern is designed by Rowan’s Marie Wallin and also appears in a Rowan booklet as ‘Island’; the name Flirty Fans seems appropriate, although at times I substituted the word ‘flirty' for another!

Wednesday, 28 May 2014

Here’s the latest (and last) in the series about small stuffed bunnies, as promised in my last post. These two were made specifically for two small people - my twin grandchildren. They were finished off to resemble as closely as possible the original soft toys owned by their Dad and his sister; and you can read about those in the previous posts.

I had to wait until a trip to England to be able to hand them over in person. It was well worth it as they were very pleased with them. Here are the photos taken by my son shortly after our visit. Can you see how they’ve cheekily swapped over in the second shot? Yes, Grandma did notice!

As usual the pattern Amanda Berry’s from Let’s Get Crafting Knitting and Crochet, which is still producing a new outfit each month for the original model - Bramble Bunny.

Wednesday, 30 April 2014

In The Reincarnation of Pink Bunny I introduced the you to the soft toy I made for my grown-up daughter to replace the much loved original lost in a house fire. I said there would be another development in my next blogpost, but somehow Easter and the crocheted eggs jumped the queue.

Here at last, is Mini the Pink, or Tiny Pink Bunny, made as an Easter present for my daughter. Once again I used Amanda Berry's very popular Bramble Bunny pattern which I used to make Wanda and Wendy. This time, however, I had to ensure that Mini Pink Bunny looked as much like the original as possible, so no garments and some additions.

I’d ‘barely’ finished when my daughter surprised me with a birthday visit here in Lanzarote and spotted the creation sitting on the bookshelf, immediately recognising the similarity with Big Pink Bunny. She was delighted with her gift and I was happy that I didn’t have to send Mini through the post.

Mini PB was introduced to Wendy and Wanda, although they appeared a little over-dressed and Mini still needed ears and paws enhancing with brown felt at this stage.

Mini travelled comfortably in my daughter’s hand baggage and soon settled in back in England, getting to know Big Pink Bunny and eventually taking a full part in Easter celebrations, including the egg hunt.

I know I said that I wouldn’t be adding to the warren anymore but there is just one more chapter in the bunny story to come, and then I really must get on with all the all the other knitting, crochet and sewing projects that are lining up for my attention, especially knitting, now that I’ve learned this new craft. It’s quite addictive and this pattern was a great way to learn techniques. A reminder that the pattern can be downloaded for free from Let’s Get Crafting, Knitting and Crochet. Subsequent issues of the magazine have included new clothes to add the wardrobe.

Since I first posted this story Mini appears to have been adopted by Mrs Bunny, who I also made for my daughter about 35 years ago, and has a ‘vacancy’ in her open arms.

About Me

I am a retired primary school headteacher who moved to Lanzarote for the year-round sunshine, the amazing landscape and the slower pace of life (Mañana really means mañana here). I have been married for 42 years, have a son and daughter and 10 year-old twin grandchildren. I relish the time to do what I like at last; get up when I want to, go to bed when I want to. Of course there are things I miss about England: the song of the robin and blackbird in my garden and watching the blue-tits nesting, the theatre, the art galleries, the cathedrals, but I get my fix on the visits back to Blighty and travels further afield. This is my home now, in every sense.